Sangweni takes over Joint Operations at change of command parade

1508

Major General Lucky Sangweni has been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General and taken over as the Chief of Joint Operations of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) from Lieutenant General Rudzani Maphwanya, who is set to become the next Chief of the SANDF.

Maphwanya handed over command to Sangweni during a change of command parade on 26 May.

The SANDF said Sangweni’s career highlights include his appointment as the SA National Defence Force’s landward component commander during the national joint military exercise, Exercise Ndlovu; in 2017; deployments with the inaugural African Union Mission in Burundi and three other deployments in the United Nations Mission in Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo. He was appointed to represent South Africa in the Combined Joint African Exercise (CJAX) in Zambia. He also held a position as the Military Secretary to the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans.

Sangweni completed a series of senior military courses which include the Junior Command and Staff Duties Course in 2005, the Joint Senior Command and Staff Programme in 2012 and the National Diploma in Defence and Security Programme in 2012.

Sangweni will now lead the Joint Operations division, tasked with being responsible for all deployments and exercises in the SANDF. Sangweni was previously the General Officer Commanding the Joint Operational Headquarters at the Joint Operations Division.

Maphwanya had been Chief of Joint Operations for the last two years and played a vital role in the SANDF’s support to government to curb the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. He takes over from General Solly Shoke as Chief of the SANDF from 1 June 2021. President and Commander in Chief Cyril Ramaphosa will preside over the CSANDF change of command parade in Pretoria on 28 May.